Deep well pump anchor

ABSTRACT

A hollow mandrel connected in a pump tubing string above or below the pump, conical cams formed externally in said mandrel expanding wickered slips slot mounted in a tubular sleeve surrounding said mandrel which sleeve is spring biased downwardly to cause expansion of said slips when said sleeve is rotated clockwise by pump vibration and by gravity action produced by steep helical track on sleeve resting on fixed lug on mandrel. Setting of slips thus anchors pump in casing. Release of slips is effected by lifting of slip mounting sleeve relative to mandrel by action of mandrel lug on helical track when pump tubing is rotated clockwise in preparation for withdrawing pump from well.

United States Patent 2,953,406 9/1960 Young 3,294,173 12/1966 Hodges Primary Examiner-James A. Leppink Attorney-Dana E. Keech ABSTRACT: A hollow mandrel connected in a pump tubing string above or below the pump, conical cams formed externally in said mandrel expanding wickered slips slot mounted in a tubular sleeve surrounding said mandrel which sleeve is spring biased downwardly to cause expansion of said slips when said sleeve is rotated clockwise by pump vibration and by gravity action produced by steep helical track on sleeve resting on fixed lug on mandrel. Setting of slips thus anchors pump in casing. Release of slips is effected by lifting of slip mounting sleeve relative to mandrel by action of mandrel lug on helical track when pump tubing is rotated clockwise in preparation for withdrawing pump from well.

sum 2 or 2 INVENTOR.

EL M0 L. CO/VDRA ATTORNEY.

- mama] Jmemn DEEP WELLPUMP. ANCHOR I SUMMARY OFINVENTION Faulty operation occurs in deepwell sucker rod actuated pumps when the pump is freeto creep upward during the upstroke of the pump. I I

It is therefore a principal objectiof the present invention to provide a deep well pump anchor which can be inserted in a string of pump tubing close to the pump and preferably therebelow and which will anchor the pump in a fixed position in the well casing throughout a normal season of pumping and may then be readily deactivated to facilitate'removal of the pump for servicing. y a 1 Another object of the invention is to provide such an anchor which may bereadilyinserted with the pumpinto the well in a retracted condition facilitating such insertion and which will then react to the vibration produced by starting to pump the well so as to set the anchor, in the anchoring the pump as positioned. v I

A further object is to provide such an anchor as may be deactivated at will merely by clockwise rotation of the string ofpumptubingl I BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF Tl-lE oR-Awmos" 1 FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view. of a well casing enclosing a string of pump ,tubin'g including a preferred embodiment of the present invention with the slips'th'e'reof retracted. FIG. 2 is a view similar toFlGgl with the slips expanded.-

H6. 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of FlG.l. g

FIG. is a horizontal sectional viewtaken on the line 4-4 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a horizontal sectional viewtaken on the line 5-5 of FIGJ. i t

FIG. 6 isa vertical sectional view taken on the line 6-6 of FIG. 3. FIG. 7 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 7-7 of FlG.4. z

FlG. 8 is a perspective view of a slip of the invention. DESCRIPTION: OF THEPREFERRED EMBODIMENT The preferred embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawings comprises a deep well pump anchor 10 which is adapted to be assembled sequentially in a ump tubingstring ill by connecting upper and lower ends of the anchor 10 respectively to adjacent tubing'sections Hand 13. A deep,

well pump (not shown) is also incorporated in the pump tubing string 11 preferably just below o'r just above the anchor 10. The anchor l0 is employed thus associated with adeep well pump in a pump tubing string .to anchor the pump at a preselected level in a deep well which is lined with a well casing 14 and which is engaged by the anchor 10 to accomplish its anchoring function. v t

The anchor 10 includes-a hollow steel mandrel 15 having external threads 16 and 17 adjacent its 'upper and lower ends to receive couplings l8 and 19 by which the mandrel 15 is connected to pump tubing sections 12 and 13. The coupling m is provided externally adjacent its lower end with-a series of four vertical ribs 20, the purpose of which will be made clear ttereinafier. x

The mandrel 15 is provided exteriorly with consecutive shallow annular recesses and 2 6, the upper recess 25 having an upper cylindrical surface 27 and below this an upwardly tapering conical cam face 28. The lower annular recess 26 has a cylindrical surface 29, and, therebelow, an upwardly tapering conical cam face 30. The cylindricalsurfaces 27 and 29 have like diameters and the conical cam faces 28 and 30 are tapered alike. Apart from recesses 25 and 26, the mandrel 15 is cylindrical with a uniform diameter throughout its length. Welded to the outer surface of the mandrel 15 in an area approximately midway between the lower end of lower annular recess 26 and the bottom end of the mandrel is a sleeve supporting lug 31 and a pair of shorter spacing lugs 32, these surrounding casing thereby lower annular internal shoulder '45 is provided with three 2 three, lugs being equally spaced circumferentially about the mandrel. i

The anchor 10 also includes three slips 33, one of which is shown in FIG. 8, which fit slideably. within three vertical slots 34 which are provided in a slip mounting sleeve 35 and on the same level therein and equally. spaced circumferentially in said sleeve. .Thin plates -40 and 41 extend upwardly. and downwardly respectively from the upper and lower ends of the slips 33 and are formed integral with the body of the slip. The outer surfaces of the slips 33 have an arched conformation the purpose of which will be made clear hereinafter. Each slip is provided at its upperand lower radially outermost edges with arcuate wickers 42 the cutting edges. of which'face upwardly. The-radially inner face 43 of each .slip 33 is shaped to conform to the annular mandrel recesses 25 and 26 when this slip is in its retracted position as shown in FIG. 6 This occurs when the sleeve 35 is in its uppermost position as shown in this view, and this is effected in the following manner.

Formed inwardly in an upper end portion of the sleeve 35 is an annular reinforcingshoulder 44 which decreases the internal, diameter of this portion of said sleeve. -Als0. formed in? wardly from a lower end portion of sleeve35 is an axially longer annular. internal shoulder 45 and the lower end of the sleeve 35, where it is reinforced by shoulder 45, has a fairly steeply inclined helical'track' 46 provided thereon which terminates at its lower end in a stop shoulder 47.

Coiled about the mandrel 15 between the coupling 18 and the upper end of sleeve35 is' an. expansive spring 48. The sleeve 35 rests downwardly by its own weight upon the supporting lug 31 and the level at whichthe sleeve is thus supported depends upon the point in the helical track 46 at which said sleeve rests upon said lug.'The sleeve is completely free to rotate about the mandrel l5 betweenan upper position which is approximately shown in FIG. 1 where thestop shoulder 47 engages the left sideof the sleeve supporting lug 3! and its downward position which is-approximately shown in FIG, 2, where said shoulder engages the right side of saidlug. The anchor 10 is assembled with coil spn'ing'48 under such an expansive tension that the sleeve 35, however positioned, is always spring biased downwardly. l l

' To assist in maintaining the slip mounting sleeve 35 in concentric relation with the mandrel '15, the upper annular internal shoulder 4 4 is provided with three guide ribs'49 and the similar guide ribs 50 which ribs slideably contact the mandrel 15 in areas of its maximum outside diameter, at least while the anchor is in retracted condition, as shown in lFlG. 6, which is the only time that this assistance at both ends of the sleeve 35 is required, as will be pointed out in explaining the operation of the invention.

OPERATION When the sleeve 35 is rotated as shown in FIG. I with the stop shoulder 47 almost contacting the left side of lug 31. the sleeve 35 is supported in approximately its uppermost position on the mandrel 15 which, in turn, supports the three slips 33 in their uppermost positions as shown in FIG. 6 where it is seen that the inner surfaces 43 of the slips conform to the shape given the outer surface of the mandrel 15 by the annular external recesses 25 and 26. This permits the slips 33 to yield to any pressure from the outside so as to withdraw to their fully retracted position shown in this view. It is with the tool 10 in this position that the tubing string 1.1 embodying the anchor 10 and a deep well pump (not shown), is lowered into the well. When the installation of the tubing string 1 1 has proceeded to the point where the pump is located at the proper level for 35 by its own weight and the weight of slips 33 as well as the constant downward bias of spring 48, produces a resultant rotational force through the caming action of the helical track 46 on the stationary lug 31, which rotates'the sleeve 35 to the position in which this is shown in FIG. 2 thereby lowering the sleeve together with the slips 33 to the positions in which these are shown in FIG. 7. This shifts the three slips 33 radially outwardly through the slots 34 in the sleeve 35 and presses the wickers 42 against the inner face of well casing 14, as also shown in FIG. 4, with the result that these wickers bite into the metal of the casing and thus prevent elevation of the anchor in said casing and thislikewise anchors the pump in place.

As long as the anchor 10 remains settled in this position in the casing 14 it retains its gripping relation with the interior of the casing and continues to lock the pump associated therewith in a fixed location on the well. All that is necessary for this locking action of the anchor to continue in effect is to allow the anchor to remain thus expanded in the casing and it will do this until it is disturbed from this relationship with the casing by a clockwise rotation of the pump tubing string 11.

Such a rotation does not take effect however unless this is done deliberately and for the express purpose of releasing the anchor from gripping relation with the casing and this is ordinarily; deferred until the conclusion of a normal pumping season when it becomes necessary to remove the pump tubing stringfrom the well for purposes of conducting the seasonal inspection and repairs of the pump before reintroducing the same for another season s operation.

Rotation of the pump tubing string 11 clockwise for the purp, e ofcausing the anchor to release its grip on the casing, v ates the mandrel 15 which causes the lug 31 to travel about J the -lower end of the mandrel in contact with the helical track 46 which has the effect of lifting the sleeve 35 from its lowermost position shown in FIGS. 2 and 7 to its uppermost position shown in FIGS. 1 and 6. As shown in these views, the lifting of the sleeve 35 lifts the slips 33 to a level where these are opposite the annular recesses formed exteriorly in the mandrel and into which the slips 33 are free to move. This freedom inevitably breaks the hold which the wickers have taken on the inner surface of the well casing and frees the anchor 'and the pump and the pump tubing string 11 for ready withdrawal from the well.

I claim:

1. A device for anchoring a deep well pump in a surrounding casing, said device comprising:

a hollow mandrel having means at its upper end to suspend it from a pumping string;

conical cam means exteriorly provided on said mandrel and tapering upwardly;

wickered slips fitting said cam means and adapted to be expanded by downward movement of said slips;

a sleeve surrounding said mandrel and having slots in which said slips are mounted, there being a helical track provided on the lower end of said sleeve;

a lug projecting from said mandrel into supporting relation with said sleeve so that said track rests on said lug; and

spring means biasing said sleeve downwardly on said mandrel.

2. A device as recited in claim 1 wherein stop means is provided for limiting the degree of relative rotation permitted between said mandrel and said sleeve to the length of said helical track.

3. A device as recited in claim 2 wherein said track is relatively steeply angled and is approximately 350 in length. 

1. A device for anchoring a deep well pump in a surrounding casing, said device comprising: a hollow mandrel having means at its upper end to suspend it from a pumping string; conical cam means exteriorly provided on said mandrel and tapering upwardly; wickered slips fitting said cam means and adapted to be expanded by downward movement of said slips; a sleeve surrounding said mandrel and having slots in which said slips are mounted, there being a helical track provided on the lower end of said sleeve; a lug projecting from sAid mandrel into supporting relation with said sleeve so that said track rests on said lug; and spring means biasing said sleeve downwardly on said mandrel.
 2. A device as recited in claim 1 wherein stop means is provided for limiting the degree of relative rotation permitted between said mandrel and said sleeve to the length of said helical track.
 3. A device as recited in claim 2 wherein said track is relatively steeply angled and is approximately 350* in length. 